US575597A - Office-indicator - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.)

El DUNDON UPFIGE INDIGATOR.

N0. 575;597. Patented Jan. .19, 1897.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD DUNDON, OF FORT LEAVENVORTH, KANSAS.

OFFICE-INDICATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 575,597, dated January 19, 1897.

Application filed .Tune l5, 1896. Serial No. 595,573. (No model.)

To all wha/lt it Vntf/U concern,.-

Be it known that I, EDWARD DUNDON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Fort Leavenworth, in the county of Leavenworth and Stateof Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvement-s in Door-Indicators; and I do hereby declare the following` to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to door-indicators.

My obj eet is to provide a more simple,cheap, and easily-operated door-indicator adapted for use on office, residence, and water-closet doors, or on any door where it is desirable that an outsider be notified that the apartmentis occupied, the party therein too busy to be interviewed, or that entrance may be had.

Having this object in View, the invention consists of a doorindicator of novel construclion, as will appear more in detail hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a front elevation of the indicator; Fig. 2, a cross-sectional view, and Fig. 3 a sectional plan view. i

In the drawings the numeral l designates the door of the apartment.

I provide a rectangular metal door-plate 2, havin g a centrally-disposed elongated vertical guide-slot 3. Two ribbon-springs 4 and 5 have their lower ends 6 and '7, respectively, fastened to the door-plate, while their upper ends are free to slide in depressions therein when the springs are compressed.

The numeral 8 designates an indicator-slide which is bent into a longitudinal depression 9, in which some suitable words may be etched or to which a printed strip may be pasted or otherwise connected. Of course these words would vary according to the use to which the indicator was to be put. If used'in connection with awater-closet, the word Occupied might be employed, while if the indicator was for oflice use the words Not in or Out would be suitable. If used on the door of a residence, the Words Not at home or At home could be placed on the slide. The upper portion of theindicator-slide should be provided with some suitable words, as Unoccupied when used on a water-closet door, or the name of the tenant, as, for instance,

vices 19 to the inner side of the door.

Mrs H. T. Smith, when used on the door of a residence. Connected to the back of the slide are two arms l0 and ll, which are provided with registering bifurcations 12, that serve as bearings, as will appear present] y. These arms project through the vertical slit in the door-plate and are adapted for movement therein.

I employ an ornamental outer housing-plate 13, having a bent edge 14, which overlaps the edge of the door-plate and forms a housing for the indicator-slide and serves to keep the same in position. This housing-plate is provided with a central longitudinal sight-opening l5 of slightly greater length than the words on the indicator-slide and in alinement therewith.

The parts heretofore described are connected to the door by screws or other fastening devices 16 at the four corners of the plates and slides.

The door is cut away to form a vertical opening 17 in alineinent with the slit in the door-plate and to receive the projecting ends of the arms on the door-plate.

There is a second sm all door-plate l8,which is fastened by screws or other fastening de- This door-plate is provided with a T-shaped vertical slotl 20, and it also has two arms 2l and 22, which project into the slot in the door. There is an operating device bent into the shape of a bell-crank lever 23. One arm of this lever is pivoted to the arms 2l and 22 by a pin 24, and its outer end carries a transverse pin 25, which lies in the bifurcations of the arms projecting from the outside doorplate.- The inner upwardly-bent arm of the operating-lever carries a handle 26.

Ordinarily the indicator-slide is down, so that the word Unoccupied shows through the sight-opening. When it is desired to operate the slide, however, the operating-lever is pulled down and the indicator-slide is thereupon forced up, bringing the lettering Occupied7 thereon into view, and the slide remains held in this position by the springs until the handle is pushed up again, whereupon the word Unoceupied appears.

It is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise construction herein shown and described, but consider that I am entitled to all such variations as come within the spirit and scope of the invention..

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new ism l. In a door-indicator,tl1e combination with a door, of a movable indicator-slide carried thereby, and a lever which is pivoted connected to thc slide and pivoted to the door, said lever extendin transversely through the latter and provided with a free handle.

2. ln a door-indicator,the combination with a door, of a movable indicator-slide carried thereby, and a bell-crank lever which has one of its arms connected to the slide,and its other arm projecting` transversely through the door and provided with a free handle7 said lever being pvoted to the door.

3. The herein-described door-indicator comprising,` the combination with a movable indicator-slide and a housingtherefor which is provided with a sight'opening, of mechanism for moving the slide to any desired extent, and springs adapted to coact With the slide and retain it in position after any degree of adjustment has been effected.

4. In a doo1'indicato1,tl1e combination with a door-plate and a housing-plate having: a sight-opening, of an indicator-slide movable between the housing-plate and door-plate, ribbon-springs bearing on the indicator-slide and serving to hold it in position after adjustment, and an operating-lever connected to the indicator-slide, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification inv the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

EDWARD DUNDON.

XVitnesses:

RALPH DoNNoLLY, STANISLAW LozoWsKI.

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